Shadow Mothers: Nannies, Au Pairs, and the Micropolitics of Mothering

This is the first installment of the Clayman Institute's Spring 2011 Event Series. In Shadow Mothers University of Wisconsin professor Cameron Macdonald shines a new light on an aspect of contemporary motherhood often hidden from view: the need for paid childcare by women returning to the workforce, and the complex bonds mothers forge with the “shadow mothers” they hire. Macdonald illuminates both sides of this unequal and complicated relationship by conducting in-depth interviews with professional women and childcare providers as well as immigrant and American-born nannies. This event is co-sponsored by Feminist Studies and Sociology. It is free and open to all. Books will be available for sale at the event.